


A Day at the Beach

by Bonfoi



Series: Lupin_Snape Family Fest 2008 [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: 2008, Community: lupin_snape, Family Fest Challenge, HP: EWE, M/M, Romance, Schmoop, slice-of-life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-22
Updated: 2013-06-22
Packaged: 2017-12-15 18:18:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,962
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/852577
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bonfoi/pseuds/Bonfoi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The brisk wind should have been cold, biting even through the layers of enchanted wool and silk, if the wizard had wrapped himself in them and not been surrounded by lovingly layered protective charms.  Still…he wouldn’t have missed this for the world…the sight of his children cavorting with their stern Daddy was a gift every day and he’d cherish it like a wise man ought.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Day at the Beach

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: A bit of frottage between married men.

~§¤§~

**_Disclaimer:_** The world of Harry Potter, its characters and settings are the copyrighted works of J.K. Rowling, Warner Bros., her publishing companies and affiliates. No profit was made from the writing of this story nor was any malice intended in any way, shape or form to the author or the actors/actresses who so brilliantly have brought them to life.

This author is not responsible for underage readers. Please observe the ratings, warnings, and age of legal consent for your country.

~§¤§~

If anyone from their year at Hogwarts or their comrades from the War could see the dour man once called ‘Greasy Git’, ‘Bat of the Dungeons’ and ‘Traitor’, they would feel their perceptions had been greatly distorted. There, running back and forth on the rocky beach of a small island in the Orkneys, was one Severus Snape…Daddy to the children shrieking with delight at his antics…lover, helpmeet, and friend to the man watching him with an indulgent eye.

Severus’ trousers were rolled up to his knees, showing his legs in all their pale, almost-hairless glory. His sleeves were also rolled up, revealing his powerful forearms and the dark hair that curled and twisted over the now-burnished copper skin. When he turned to swoop over one of their children for a playful tussle and to steal a hug, the open neckline of his shirt showed a thick gold chain and the heavy gold and platinum band upon it, swinging in counterpoint with each child’s dizzying traverse.

A small hand patted at Remus’ thigh, drawing his attention back to the important work of building a sandcastle. “Yes, Ceridwen? Haven’t been holding up my part of the bargain, eh?” He scooped more damp sand into the magic bucket and watched his youngest daughter’s delight as the sand swirled up into a fanciful wave and then formed into the turrets of their castle. “What color do you want the tiles, little one?” he asked.

“Boo, Dada…boo wike sky…” she lisped past her six teeth as she pointed up. Dark hair, darker even than Severus’ swirled around her head with the breeze. The faint scar down her left cheek was the last reminder of her life during the War; neither of her fathers ever let strangers point it out without hexing them silly. Their children were sacrosanct. Remus made the tiles blue and then added a golden sheen to the little matchstick walkway from the tiny drawbridge to the open portcullis of the sandcastle.

“Birties?” Ceridwen asked as she tipped her head to the side. Another wand, this one belonging to Severus snuck past her ear and conjured small owls—snowy ones—to fly over and around the walls and turrets. Their only daughter grinned and clapped her hands. “Thathee…up…up…” Her arms reached for Severus and he gently _Levitated_ her up and over Remus’ head into his own arms to the delight of Teddy and his brothers, Petruchio and Randal.

“Hey! Do us, Dad…c’mon, do us!” Petruchio was shoving his brothers into a line, waiting for Severus to make them fly as well. Teddy just rolled his eyes at the antics and Randal cowered back a bit—he hated to leave solid ground.

“Petro…how many times have I told you about putting yourself forward?” Severus’ voice was soft, softer than anyone would imagine, as he caught his eldest son’s eye. The boy, ten in a fortnight, scuffed his toes in the sand and grimaced at the look on his dad’s face.

Taking a deep breath, the boy stood tall and looked from Remus to Severus. “A man can put himself forward, but only a fool drags his cohorts along,” he quoted back. Severus’ faint motion had the boy flying up with a shout as he circled his family and then floated gently down next to his brothers. Petruchio knew better than to press his luck and just ran around the sandcastle and his Papa and sister to hug the thin wizard around the waist. “Thank you, Dad,” he whispered.

Severus’ arms—still full of Ceridwen—opened to the boy he just _knew_ would be in Gryffindor when Hogwarts reopened next year. “It’s all right as long as you remember. You are the one blazing a path for your siblings to follow, Petro. Now, please hold your sister and I’ll give Teddy his turn. Come here, Randal, I want you see how I flick the wand _just so_.” Randal skidded to a stop at his side even before the words were taken by the wind. Teddy loved his flying over Papa’s head and instead of a circle, Daddy loop-the-looped him causing his hair and skin to become polka-dotted with green which in turn made his siblings laugh.

Standing up, Remus brushed the sand from his trousers, turning _just so_ to let Severus see how his large hands followed the contour of that remarkable arse, curving over the gluteus maximus and gently flexing those strong, scarred fingers. Remus’ grin grew bigger when he heard the strangled gurgle Severus tried to swallow when their children demanded the brunet tell them why he was turning red in the face.

Gathering their chicks around him, Severus Snape-Lupin glared at his lascivious husband of four years. “You, sir, are a scoundrel!” he snapped, but with a soft look in his dark eyes. “Come along, family. The cottage kitchen should have been restocked by now and I for one am hungry for clotted cream and strawberry jam on a scone.” The children seconded his idea and grabbed for both their fathers’ hands and the kite-tail Portkey Remus had pulled out of his pocket as Severus spoke. 

Remus’ eyes shone golden as he asked, “Everyone holding on?” Seeing Ceridwen’s small hand wasn’t quite tight enough, he wrapped his over hers with a smile. “Hold tight, everyone!” At precisely four o’clock the Portkey activated and sent them to the secluded cottage they had bought for times such as this. As usual, they landed in a heap but for Randal and Severus, but everyone laughed and brushed each other off.

Ceridwen’s small feet barely made any noise as she ran to the kitchen, most probably her favorite room of any home, childish voice begging Daddy to “swish t’e sthick fo’ cweams” as her brothers seconded the notion. Severus’ magic reached out and turned her to the sink and the small stairs before them, a silent demand to wash her hands before she ate. Once that was taken care of—and her brothers cleaned of all sand and salt—the family began setting the rough-hewn table with food: clotted Devonshire cream, freshly made; fluffy scones from Diagon Alley’s premier bakery; strawberry jam from the Lowlands of Scotland; thick slices of ham, redolent with the smell of brown sugar and cinnamon; cucumber sandwiches on bread so thin, it looked like baked parchment; peaches from the Malfoy hothouses, so juicy and ripe; freshly brewed tea and juice from Hogwarts courtesy of Professors Malfoy and Potter, the children’s godfathers; and the _piece de resistance_ , a fruit trifle with so many layers none of the children could count them.

Their tea was full of laughter and stories about Daddy’s ability to walk on water and Papa’s great castle-building skills. The hours flew by in the small cottage kitchen until it was nine o’clock and bedtime for all good little Snape-Lupins.

§§§ö§§§

Once the children were tucked into their beds, and the monitoring spells on Ceridwen set once again, Remus pulled his lover in for a kiss, waiting for the giggles of their sons to waft out into the corridor. Shushing them, a tradition that Remus reveled in, the two men dimmed the hallway candles and waited while the children slowly drifted off, glowing with fresh sea air and dreams of tomorrow’s promise of a ride in an authentic wizarding Viking longship. When only the soft sigh of the night’s breeze could be heard did the wizards move to their bedroom, closing the door with a whisper and a locking silencing charm.

“I love it when we come here, Severus.” Remus’ voice was muffled by the jumper he was then pulling over his head but his husband didn’t mind…the view was well worth it. Severus found his jaw dropping as he watched his grey-and-ash blond mate shimmying and twisting out of his clothes, enticing and innocently wanton. His pants were off before he realized that his button-down shirt was still on; Remus’ chuckle and then his strong fingers on the buttons brought Severus closer to the object of his love and affections. “I think you love it when I come anywhere you are, eh?” the werewolf growled.

Severus gave himself over to his lover, the stay-at-home father of their brood who was truly the glue that held them all together. He put his hands over Remus’, stilling them and then bringing them to his lips to kiss the knuckles and mouth some old scars. “I am a lucky man, Remus Lupin-Snape. Every day I have my family and my lover…” Severus’ voice broke, something unheard of before he fell in love. He turned the two of them to look out the window at the stones of the Ring of Brodgar. 

“Remember when I first brought you here, Remus? That wild storm that drove us to the center of the stone ring? When I hold you my arms, when I surround myself with you and the children, I feel the same power…” he looked down at the naked man pressed to his chest, “…I feel it inside. Gryffindorish, I know, but whom else but a Gryffindor would understand?” Severus bent his head and kissed Remus’ cheeks and finally his lips, licking and biting until they opened to him, welcomed him into the heat and warmth. Somehow during the kiss, Remus finally disrobed his husband and proceeded to frot against him, stealing both their breaths.

A knock on the door and a _twang_ sounded, signaling Randal was now standing outside their door. Neither man thought once about breaking apart and grabbing their dressing gown. Remus was faster and had the door open as Severus was tying the sash of his gown. “What’s wrong, Randal?” He knelt down to his son’s height, pulling the boy close and listening to the ragged whispers. The werewolf’s first instincts were always to protect his pack and Severus waited while his lover soothed their son.

Once Randal had whispered his fears—he’d had a nightmare, a recurrent one, of falling from a great height, but this time he saw his brothers and sister falling as well—Remus stood, picking the boy up as he did. “C’mon, my fellow. You and I and Daddy will share a cup of hot cocoa—one marshmallow for you—and a sip of that special tonic Daddy makes for you.” His glowing amber eyes flicked to Severus’ dark ones, sharing the hope that soon the lad would sleep through the night, although he’d lasted longer than ever before that night.

§§§ö§§§

Hours later, once all the children had been checked and their blankets had been pulled higher, the parents lay together, heaving chest to slick back, coming down from their love-making with faint murmurs of love and happiness. Severus’ hand still stroked Remus’ hip as the werewolf petted his husband’s forearm. “You’re a good father, Severus Lupin-Snape,” he whispered.

“You showed me how to do it, Wolf.” Severus’ voice rippled across Remus’ cooling skin. “Tomorrow you will show me how to build sandcastles. And, later, I’ll show you how a quickie can be fulfilling.” His husband turned in his arms, chuckling.

“Severus…as I live and breathe, you will always surprise me!”

~§¤§~

_~~~ Comments, like rain in the desert, are greatly appreciated.  
Thank you for reading. ~~~_

**Author's Note:**

>  **Research**  
>  http://www.babynames.org.uk/celtic-girl-baby-names-a-f.htm
> 
> http://www.garioch.demon.co.uk/orkney.htm


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